Welcome to the magical world that is Sword of Kings, the premier game of Red Knight Card Games. From the moment you pick up the box you will be drawn into this world by its beautiful artwork. As you read the instructions you will find yourself completely immersed in a kingdom locked in turmoil. You soon discover the future of the kingdom is in your hands as you must endeavor to defeat a dragon, its minions, and even the mountain itself, all the while trying to outsmart other knights who are trying to make sure you fail. Are you up to the challenge?

~ History of the Sword ~

The evil dragon has been laying waste to the kingdom from its lair in the volcanic mountain. The king has decided to end the dragon’s reign of terror and ventured in search of the evil beast. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned and the king was slain by the dragon. To make matters worse, the dragon sequestered the king’s symbol of power (The Sword of Kings) to its lair.

The kingdom has since plunged into darkness as you and the other knights fight each other for the right to be king. Knowing the only way to unite the land is to recover The Sword of Kings, you turn your attention to the volcanic mountain eerily looming in the distance. Your exhilaration grows as you rush towards it, confident you are ready to face whatever dangers stand between you and The Sword of Kings…

~ Game Objective ~

The excitement begins as you assume the role of one of the knights vying to become king. The initial goal for you and your competitors is to use the various tunnel cards to build your own unique tunnel from your Cave Entrance to the Dragon’s Lair. While building your tunnel, you will discover wondrous, magical objects to use and encounter friendly denizens and creatures willing to aid you on your perilous quest. At the same time, you'll uncover evil creatures and natural disasters (Tunnel Delays) to play on the other knights to slow their progress. Once inside the lair, you must battle the dragon that is defending The Sword of Kings. This stage of the game becomes even more exhilarating, for you may be forced to lose a turn while dodging the dragon’s fiery breath or are fortunate enough to retrieve The Sword of Kings and wield it against the dragon. But, don’t get too confident if you happen to pick up the sword, because the dragon may just knock it back out of your hands. The game ends when you or one of the other knights defeats the dragon and claims the honor of becoming king.

~ Gameplay ~

Part of what makes Sword of Kings' gameplay so interesting is it gives you infinite options on how to execute your turn. You can go from one extreme to the other by playing all the cards in your hand or not playing any at all. This is known as “Resting” which also enables you to draw an extra card on your turn. Besides deciding how many cards to play, you must also choose the best strategy for using them. This is due to the fact that many of the cards can be played in two different ways; you can either use them to help you on your noble quest or to hinder an unworthy knight from getting closer to the dragon’s lair. Each of these decisions will greatly impact your chance to become king, so choose wisely...

~ Replayability ~

With 48 unique Tunnel cards, four different Cave Entrances, and four imposing Dragon’s Lairs, you'll never construct two tunnels that look the same. Not only will all the tunnels be different, but with four various Knights to play as (each with their own unique strengths and weakness) and a total of 108 cards in the deck, every game you play will vary greatly in both style and duration. This ensures that you must change your strategy with every new game - or fail in your noble quest! The more you play the more you realize that becoming king requires a balance of skill, cunning, and even some luck to overcome all the horrors that await you.

~ Player Review ~

Sword of Kings’ fundamental balance of fast-paced game play and complex strategy is what keeps the core of this game fun and exciting. The game mechanics are well designed and complex; the complexity allows for layered strategy, while the intuitive game mechanics and small luck factor lets new players quickly become competitive. The variability of the cards allows each game to feel fresh and exciting. Sword of Kings is a game that you will continue coming back to. ~ Matt K.

~ The Quest Continues ~

Although Sword of Kings is a great standalone game, those of us at Red Knight Card Games want to keep your quest new and exciting. So we are already in the process of making a number of expansions to do just that. Please look for our ads in future GTM issues or visit us on our website and Facebook.